|Climate, Biodiversity, and Forests - Issues and Opportunities Emerging from the Kyoto Protocol (WRI, 1998, 40 pages)|
1 Duncan Austin, José Goldemberg, and Gwen Parker. Contributions to Climate Change: Are Conventional Metrics Misleading the Debate? (Washington DC: World Resources Institute, 1998).
2 Alan D, Hecht and Dennis Tirpak. "Framework Agreement on Climate Change: A Scientific and Policy History." Climatic Change 29, no. 4 (April 1995): 371.
3 Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. Working Group 1, Climate Change. The IPCC Scientific Assessment. World Meteorological Organization and United Nations Environment Programme. J.T. Houghton, G.J. Jenkins, and J.J. Ephraums, eds. (New York: Cambridge University Press, 1990): xxxii.
4 United Nations. United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (New York: 1992). Available online (http://www.unfccc.de/fccc/conv/convhtm).
5 Framework Convention on Climate Change, Article 4(1)d.
6 Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). Greenhouse Gas Inventory Reporting Instructions. IPCC Guidelines for National Greenhouse Gas Inventories. United Nations Development Programme, Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development, International Energy Agency, and International Panel on Climate Change. Volumes 1 and 2 (United Kingdom: 1995).
7 Hecht and Tirpak, "Framework Agreement on Climate Change."
8 Sierra Club and Sierra Club of Canada. Risky Business: Why Joint Implementation Is the Wrong Approach to Global Warming Policy (Washington DC: Sierra Club, 1995). A. Agarwal and S. Narain. Global Warming in an Unequal World. A Case of Environmental Colonialism (New Delhi: Centre for Science and Environment, 1991). Climate Network Europe. Joint Implementation from a European NGO Perspective (Brussels: July 1994).
9 Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. Climate Change 1995: The Science of Climate Change. Contribution of Working Group I to the Second Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. World Meteorological Organization and United Nations Environment Programme. J.T. Houghton, L.G. Meira Filho, B.A. Callander, N. Harris, A. Kattenberg, and K. Maskell, eds. (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1996):4.
10 For almost all industrialized countries, 1990 is the base year from which they calculate emissions limitations. However, some countries are allowed to use other base years that result in higher emissions. For example, Bulgaria may use 1989 as its base year, and Poland 1988. As stated earlier, the higher the base year emissions, the less onerous the reduction commitment during the commitment period.
11 The division of Annex I and non-Annex I countries was based on level of economic development and historical responsibility for the buildup of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere. Annex I countries are largely responsible for the current buildup of gases, and as such are the first group of nations to act towards reducing emissions. IPCC. Climate Change 1995: The Science of Climate Change, Summary for Policy Makers. Bert Bolin, John Houghton, and I.. Gylvan Meira Filho, eds. (Rome: December 1995).
12 These gases are carbon dioxide (CO2), nitrous oxide (N2O), methane (CH4), hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs), perfluorocarbons (PFCs), and sulfur hexafluoride (SF6 # #).
13 Michael A. Cairns and Richard A. Meganck. "Carbon Sequestration, Biological Diversity, and Sustainable Development; Integrated Forest Management." Environmental Management 18, no. 1(1994): 13-22. IPCC Working Group II. Technologies, Policies and Measures for Mitigating Climate Change. R.T. Watson, M.C. Zinyowera, and R.H. Moss, eds. Technical Paper (November 1990.
14 Nigel Dudley, Jean Jeanrenaud, and Francis Sullivan. Bad Harvest? The 'Timber Trade and the Degradation of the World's Forests. World Wildlife Fund (London: Earthscan Publications, Ltd, 1995).
15 Robert Dixon et al. "Carbon Pools and Flux of Global Forest Ecosystems." Science 263 (1994):185-90.
16 Dirk Bryant et al.L The Last Frontier Forests: Ecosystems & Economies on the Edge (Washington DC: World Resources Institute, 1997).
17 Bryant et al., The Last Frontier Forests. Frontier forests are defined as large tracts of relatively intact forests that are large enough to support their biodiversity even in the event of a natural disaster. The plant biodiversity index was estimated by multiplying the country's total number of higher plant species per unit area by the country's total frontier forest area.
18 Mark Trexler and Christine Haugen. Keeping It Green: Tropical Forestry Opportunities for Mitigating Climate Change (Washington DC: World Resources Institute, 1995). The ranking is based on estimates of the highest net change in stored carbon through slowed deforestation and new biomass interventions between 1990 and 2050.
19 The three Conventions and Forest Principles that emerged from the 1992 Rio Earth Summit are:
United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP). United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification. Text with Annexes. (Geneva: UNEP, 1995).
United Nations. United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (United Nations Conference on Environment and Development, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, June 1992).
United Nations. United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity (United Nations Conference on Environment and Development, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, June 1992).
"Non-Legally Binding Authoritative Statement of Principles on the Management, Conservation and Sustainable Development of All Types of Forests" (United Nations Conference on Environment and Development, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, June 1992).
United Nations Commission on Sustainable Development. Report of the Ad Hoc Intergovernmental Panel on Forests on. Its Fourth Session (United Nations, New York, 11-21 February 1997). While there are many forest agreements, most recently the Intergovernmental Forum on Forests was formed to pursue a consensus and formulate options consistent with the Forest Principles.
20 Sandra Brown et al. "Management of Forests for Mitigation of Greenhouse Gas Emissions," in Climate Change 1995. Impacts, Adaptations and Mitigation of Climate Change: Scientific-Technical Analyses. Contribution of Working Group II to the Second Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. R.T. Watson, M.C. Zinyowera, and R.H. Moss, eds. (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1996); 773-97.
21 Using data extrapolated from graphs on page 57, Working Group II, 1996, "Technologies, Policies and Measures," we estimated that between 2008 and 2012, approximately 80.4 million tons of carbon can be sequestered or conserved within the United States. Then, using projections from International Energy Outlook 1998 for the years 2008-2012, we estimated that to reach the 7 percent reduction from reference case projections, the United States must reduce its carbon emissions by 477.69 million tons. In fact, this figure may be an underestimate, as the emissions only estimate carbon, thus omitting releases from the other five greenhouse gases. Department of Energy. International Energy Outlook 1998. With Projections Through 2020. Energy Information Administration. DOE/EA-0484(98) (Washington DC: April 1998): 142, Table A9.
22 R.A. Houghton et al. "Changes in the Carbon Content of Terrestrial Biota and Soils Between I860 and 1980: A Net Release of CO2 to me Atmosphere." Ecological Monographs, 53 (1983): 235-62,
23 D. Schimel et al. "Radiative Forcing of Climate Change," in Climate Change 1995: The Science of Climate Change. The figure represents the share of deforestation of the average annual carbon budget between 1980 and 1989.
24 Schimel et al., "Radiative Forcing," in Climate Change 1995.
25 Nigel Dudley, Don Gilmour, and Jean-Paul Jeanrenaud. Forests for Life. The WWF/IUCN Forest Policy Book. World Wildlife Fund and IUCN/The World Conservation Union (Switzerland: February 1996).
26 U.S. House of Representatives. House Resolution 151. Regarding Management of National Forests to Reduce Greenhouse Gases. October 21,1997.
27 Mark E. Harmon, William K. Ferrell, and Jerry F. Franklin. "Effects on Carbon Storage of Conversion of Old-Growth Forests to Young Forests." Science 247 (1990): 699.
28 John Grace et al. "Carbon Dioxide Uptake by an Undisturbed Tropical Rain Forest in Southwest Amazonia 1992 to 1993." Science 270 (November 3,1995): 778-80.
29 Paige Brown, Bruce Cabarle, and Robert Livernash. Carbon Counts: Estimating Climate Change Mitigation in Forestry Projects (Washington DC, World Resources Institute, 1997).
30 G.J. Nabuurs and G.M.J. Mohren. Carbon Fixation through Forestation Activities, Commissioned by the Foundation FACE. IBN Research Report 93/4 (The Netherlands: 1993).
31 Theodore Panayotou and Peter S. Ashton. Not by Timber Alone. The Economics and Ecology for Sustaining Tropical Forests (Washington DC: Island Press, 1992): 199.
32 Dudley et al. Forests For Life.
33 These three bodies, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, the Subsidiary Body for Scientific and Technical Advice (SBSTA), and the Subsidiary Body for Implementation, provide advice and support to the Conference of the Parties on a range of issues. While these are not the only advisory bodies, they are the primary ones. Throughout the remainder of the paper, they will be collectively referred to as "advisory bodies" unless one is specifically referenced.
34 Daniel Lashof, Natural Resources Defense Council, to Charles Rawls, United States Department of Agriculture (February 12,1998).
35 IPCC, Greenhouse Gas Inventory Reporting.
36 United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change. Methodological Issues Synthesis of Information from National Communications of Annex I Parties on Sources and Sinks in the Land-Use Change and Forestry Sector. Technical Paper. November 20,1997. Available online (http://www.unfccc.de/fccc/tp/1997/5).
37 IPCC, Greenhouse Gas Inventory Reporting.
38 Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO). The State of the World's Forests (Rome: 1997): 174.
39 World Bank. The Forest Sector. A World Bank Policy Paper (Washington DC: World Bank, 1991): 93.
40 Jack K. Winjum, Sandra Brown, and Bernhard Schlamadinger. "Forest Harvests and Wood Products: Sources and Sinks of Atmospheric Carbon Dioxide." Forest Science 44, no. 2 (May 1998): 281.
41 Harmon et al., "Effects on Carbon Storage of Conversion," 701.
42 Michelle A. Pinard and Francis E. Putz. "Retaining Forest Biomass by Reducing Logging Damage." Biotropica 28, no 3 (1996): 5.
43 While there are some low-density, old-growth forests where this may not be the case, older, dense forests such as those of the Pacific Northwest have been shown to hold more carbon than younger forests. This is because older forests store large amounts of carbon in the soil and in older tree stems, which is lost when these areas are logged. Harmon et al., "Effects on Carbon Storage of Conversion," 699.
44 See for example, Sandra Brown, Andrew J. Gillespie, and Ariel Lugo. "Biomass Estimation Methods for Tropical Forests with Applications to Forest Inventory Data." Forest Science 35, no. 4 (1989): 881-902.
45 German Advisory Council on Global Change. The Accounting of Biological Sinks and Sources Under the Kyoto Protocol-A Step Forwards or Backwards for Global Environmental Protection? Special Report 1998 (Bremerhaven: 1998). Available online (http://www.awi-bremerhaven.de/WBGU).
46 FAO, The State of the World's Forests, 21,
47 Winjum et al., "Forest Harvests and Wood Products," 272-84. Clark Row and Robert B. Phelps. "Wood Carbon Flows and Storage After Timber Harvest," in Forests and Global Change Volume 2: Forest Management Opportunities for Mitigating Carbon Emissions. R. Neil Sampson and Dwight Hair, eds. (Washington DC: American Forests, 1996); 27-58. This study estimated that in the United States 35 million tons of carbon accumulate in wood products each year.
48 U.S. House of Representatives, Resolution 151.
49 T.P. Kolchugina and T.S. Vinson. "Role of Russian Forests in the Global Carbon Balance." Ambio 24, no. 5 (1995): 258.
50 Kolchugina and Vinson, "Role of Russian Forests."
51 German Advisory Council on Global Change, The Accounting of Biological Sinks, 14.
52 International Geosphere-Biosphere Programme Terrestrial Working Group, Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences. "The Terrestrial Carbon Cycle: Implications for the Kyoto Protocol." Science 280 (May 29,1998): 1393-94.
53 Brown et al., Carbon Counts.
54 United Nations Conference on Trade and Development. A Pilot Greenhouse Gas Trading System: The Legal Issues. UNC-TAD/GDS/GFSB/Misc. 2 (Geneva: United Nations, 1996).
55 Paul Faeth. An Analysis of the Potential for Water Quality Trading in Michigan: The Case of Saginaw Bay. In Press (Washington DC: World Resources Institute, 1997).
56 Framework Convention on Climate Change, Article 3(1).
57 Bryant et al., The Last Frontier Forests.
58 Pinard and Putz, "Retaining Forest Biomass."
59 Pinard and Putz, "Retaining Forest Biomass."
60 Forest Stewardship Council. Manual for Evaluation and Accreditation of Certification Bodies (Oaxaca, Mexico: Forest Stewardship Council, 1995).
61 FUNDECOR, CARFIX Project Proposal for the Edison Electric Institute (Costa Rica: FUNDECOR, 1995).
62 World Resources Institute. Forestry as a Response to Global Warming. A Workshop Report (Washington D.C.: World Resources Institute, 1994).
63 D. Noack. "Making Better Use of Tropical Timber Resources." Tropical Forest Update 5, no. 2 (June, 1995):12-13. A newsletter from the International Tropical Timber Organization.
64 Noack, "Making Better Use of Tropical Timber Resources," 13.
65 Trexler and Haugen, Keeping It Green. Brown et al., Carbon Counts. Cairns and Meganck, "Carbon Sequestration, Biological Diversity, and Sustainable Development." Robert N, Stavins. The Costs of Carbon Sequestration: A Revealed Preference Approach. CSIA Discussion Paper 95-06 (Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University, 1995). Harmon et al., "Effects on Carbon Storage of Conversion," 699.
66 Brown et al,, Carbon Counts. Paul Faeth, Cheryl Cort, and Robert Livernash, Evaluating the Carbon Sequestration Benefits of Forestry Projects in Developing Countries (Washington DC: World Resources Institute, 1994).
67 United Nations Environment Programme, Global Biodiversity Assessment (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1995):891,
68 IPCC Working Group II, Technologies, Policies and Measures.
69 Youba Sokona, Stephen Humphreys, and Jean-Philippe Thomas. "What Prospects for Africa?" in Issues 6 Options: The Clean Development Mechanism. José Goldemberg, ed. (New York: United Nations Development Programme, 1998): 111.
70 Brown et al., Carbon Counts, 8, Faeth et al., Evaluating the Carbon Sequestration Benefits, 66.
71 For example, the Rio Bravo Carbon Sequestration pilot project is using air photography, control sites, and satellite imagery Similarly ECOLAND, a forest preservation project in Costa Rica, is using satellite and photographic imaging in conjunction with contracting a local ecotourist group to undertake on-the-ground monitoring. CARFIX project implementors will undertake triennial remote sensing, and annual forest growth measurements with LANDSAT imagery. United States Initiative on Joint Implementation. Activities Implemented Jointly: Second Report to the Secretariat of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change. Accomplishments and Descriptions of Projects Accepted Under the U.S. Initiative on Joint Implementation. Volume 2. EPA 236-R-97-003 (Washington DC: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency 1998).
72 Mission to Planet Earth Science Research Plan. Land-Cover and Land-Use Change Strategy NASA Website (http://www.hq.nasa.gov/office/mtpe/draftsciplan/mtpe-srp.htm).
73 Pinard and Putz, "Retaining Forest Biomass," 5.
74 Markku Simula. "Economics of Certification," in Certification of Forest Products: Issues and Perspectives. Virgilio M. Viana, Jamison Ervin, Richard Z. Donovan, Chris Elliott, and Henry Gholz, eds. (Washington DC: Island Press, 1996): 134.
75 Mission to Planet Earth. Remarks by William Townsend, Acting Associate Administrator, September 17, 1997. Earth Science Enterprise Website (http://www.hq.nasa.gov/otfice/mtpe/what_news/97accomps.htm).
76 R.A. Sedge. "Local Logging; Global Effects." Journal of' Forestry 39, no. 7 (April 1995): 25-28.
77 Brown et al. Carbon Counts. United States Initiative on Joint Implementation, Activities Implemented Jointly. This report describes the measures taken by AIJ project implementors to avoid and guard against leakage of greenhouse gas benefits.
78 Brown et al., Carbon Counts.
79 Kenneth Chomitz. Baselines for Greenhouse Gas Reductions: Problems, Precedents, Solutions, prepared for the Carbon Offsets Unit, Development Research Group, World Bank (July 16,1998): 37-38.
80 IPCC Working Group II, Technologies, Policies and Measures.
81 Brown et al., "Management of Forests for Mitigation," in Climate Change 1995. Impacts, 775.
82 IPCC, Climate Change 1995, x.
83 Richard A. Birdsey "Carbon Storage for Major Forest Types and Regions in the Coterminous United States," in Forests and Global Change. Volume 2: Forest Management Opportunities for Mitigating Carbon Emissons. R. Neil Sampson and Dwight Hair, eds. (Washington DC: American Forests, 1996).
84 Center for Sustainable Development in the Americas. FOCADES, The Central American Environmental Fund. A pamphlet (Washington DC: Center for Sustainable Development in the Americas, 1998), Doreen Crompton. "The Proposed Guyana Rain Forest Foundation." A concept paper prepared for the Carter Center (1997).
85 IPCC, Climate Change 1995, 26.
86 Daniel Lashof, Natural Resources Defense Council, memo to Charles Rawls, United States Department of Agriculture.
87 United States Climate Action Plan (Washington DC: October, 1993); 105.
88 For information on additional meetings and fora, see the Framework Convention on Climate Change website, which maintains a schedule (www.unfccc.de),
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